Safest for Arthritis pain: Celecoxib, Naproxen, or Ibuprofen

Which is really safest for Arthritis pain: Naproxen, Ibuprofen, or Celecoxib

 By: Arlene Gentallan



Which is really safest for Arthritis pain: Naproxen, Ibuprofen, or Celecoxib

        Arthritic pain can be debilitating. While alternative treatments are available, many people around the world depend on medicine to manage this agonizing symptom. Doctors prescribe the safest and lowest recommended dose effective to relieve pain.

        Naproxen, ibuprofen, and celecoxib are popular generic names of a drugs that’s the well known among chronic pain sufferers...so which one is safest?

1. Acetaminophen (Tylenol), also known as paracetamol, is usually the first line of treatment in managing mild arthritis pain, however it doesn’t relieve inflammation. Dosage should not exceed 4000mg in 24 hours.

2. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) which includes ibuprofen and naproxen. Ibuprofen relieves pain quicker than naproxen. While on the other hand, naproxen’s pain relieving effect last longer than ibuprofen.

3. Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors (COX-2 inhibitor) celecoxib is carries less risk of gastrointestinal bleeding as opposed to NSAIDs .

Long term use of naproxen, ibuprofen, or celecoxib can increase risk of developing heart attack and stroke

        It is known that longs term use of naproxen carries a lower risk of developing heart attack and stroke as opposed to ibuprofen. Celecoxib, being a cox-2 inhibitor generally carries the most risk of cardiovascular involvement among the.

NSAID’s safety over Celecoxib Debunked by Research?

        A study by Dr. S. Nissen, Dr. M. Yeomans, Dr D. Solomon, et al., compared celecoxib, naproxen, and ibuprofen efficacy among patients suffering from arthritis who failed to achieve relief from acetaminophen.

        24,081 individuals suffering from arthritis were involved in the study. 8072 participants received 100mg celecoxib taken 2 times a day. 8040 participants received 600mg ibuprofen taken 3 times a day. 7969 participants received 375mg naproxen mg taken 2 times a day

The result of the study shows that:

        Gastrointestinal problem was lower among those taking celecoxib as opposed to those taking NSAIDs (ibuprofen and naproxen).

        Celecoxib and naproxen caused significantly lower kidney problem and hospitalization secondary to hypertension compared to ibuprofen.

The study shows that contrary to general information, ibuprofen has the highest risk in terms of gastrointestinal, renal, and cardiovascular involvement, while celecoxib appears to be the safest.